The Savoy Theatre is a West End theatre in the Strand in the City of Westminster, London, England. The theatre opened on 10 October 1881 and was built by Richard D'Oyly Carte on the site of the old Savoy Palace as a showcase for the popular series of comic operas of Gilbert and Sullivan, which became known as the Savoy operas as a result.
The theatre was the first public building in the world to be lit entirely by electricity. For many years, the Savoy Theatre was the home of the D'Oyly Carte Opera Company, which continued to be run by the Carte family for over a century. Richard's son Rupert D'Oyly Carte rebuilt and modernised the theatre in 1929, and it was rebuilt again in 1993 following a fire. It is a Grade II* listed building.
In addition to The Mikado and other famous Gilbert and Sullivan premières, the theatre has hosted such premières as the first public performance in England of Oscar Wilde's Salome (1931) and Noël Coward's Blithe Spirit (1941). In recent years it has presented opera, Shakespeare and other non-musical plays, and musicals.
The House of Savoy was the ruling family of Savoy descended from Humbert I, Count of Sabaudia (or "Maurienne"), who became count in 1032. The name Sabaudia evolved into "Savoy" (or "Savoie"). Count Peter (or Piers or Piero) of Savoy (d. 1268) was the maternal uncle of Eleanor of Provence, queen-consort of Henry III of England, and came with her to London.
King Henry made Peter Earl of Richmond and, in 1246, gave him the land between The Strand and the Thames where Peter built the Savoy Palace in 1263. On Peter's death, the Savoy was given to Edmund, 1st Earl of Lancaster, by his mother, Queen Eleanor. Edmund's great-granddaughter, Blanche, inherited the site. Her husband, John of Gaunt, 1st Duke of Lancaster, built a magnificent palace that was burned down by Wat Tyler's followers in the Peasants' Revolt of 1381. King Richard II was still a child, and his uncle John of Gaunt was the power behind the throne and so a main target of the rebels.
In about 1505 Henry VII planned a great hospital for "pouer, nedie people", leaving money and instructions for it in his will. The hospital was built in the palace ruins and was licensed in 1512. Drawings show that it was a magnificent building, with a dormitory, dining hall and three chapels. Henry VII's hospital lasted for two centuries but suffered from poor management. The sixteenth-century historian John Stow noted that the hospital was being misused by "loiterers, vagabonds and strumpets". In 1702 the hospital was dissolved, and the hospital buildings were used for other purposes. Part of the old palace was used for a military prison in the eighteenth century. In the nineteenth century, the old hospital buildings were demolished and new buildings erected.
In 1864 a fire burned everything except the stone walls and the Savoy Chapel, and the property sat empty until Richard D'Oyly Carte bought it in 1880 to build the Savoy Theatre specifically for the production of the Gilbert and Sullivan operas that he was producing. The new theatre was built speedily, and accounts noted that it "was situated on a site which, though rich in historical associations, was also rich in the olfactory sense, Mr Rimmel's scent factory being close by as was Burgess's Noted Fish-Sauce Shop."
Richard D'Oyly Carte's theatre.
Carte bought the freehold of the site, then known as "Beaufort Buildings", early in 1880 for £11,000, but had begun planning his theatre several years before. In 1877 he engaged Walter Emden, an architect whose work includes the Garrick and the Duke of York's theatres. Before completing the site purchase, city officials had assured Carte that they would open a new street on the south side of the plot, provided he paid half the cost. He paid his half in March 1880, but the officials caused lengthy delays. Carte told The Times, "I am struggling in the meshes of red tape". He finally received the necessary agreement in June. At the same time he ran into another obstacle: Emden suddenly revised his estimate of building costs upward from £12,000 to £18,000. Carte dismissed Emden, who successfully sued for £1,790 for services to date and £3,000 for wrongful dismissal.
Design of the theatre was given to C. J. Phipps. The builders were Patman and Fotheringham. Plans were drawn up and executed with speed and efficiency. Nonetheless, the advertised opening date had to be put back several times while the innovative electrical work was completed. The Savoy finally opened on 10 October 1881. Carte had at one time intended to call it the Beaufort Theatre, but he announced in a letter to The Daily Telegraph in 1881, "On the Savoy Manor there was formerly a theatre. I have used the ancient name as an appropriate title for the present one." The exterior of the building was made from red brick and Portland stone. The interior decoration, by Collinson and Locke, was "in the manner of the Italian Renaissance", with white, pale yellow and gold predominating, including a gold satin curtain (instead of the usual printed act-drop), red boxes and dark blue seats. There were none of the cherubs, deities and mythical creatures familiar from the décor of rival theatres. Carte wanted nothing that would appear too garish or gaudy to his target, middle-class audience.
On the opening night Phipps took curtain calls along with Gilbert, Sullivan and Carte. The Times commented, "A perfect view of the stage can be had from every seat in the house." Exits on all four sides of the theatre were provided, and fireproof materials were used to ensure maximum safety. There were three tiers with four levels: stalls and pit, balcony, circle, and amphitheatre and gallery at the top. The total seating capacity was 1,292. The proscenium arch was 30 feet (9.1 m) high by 30 feet (9.1 m) wide, and the stage was 27 feet (8.2 m) deep from the proscenium to the back wall. The theatre originally had its main entrance on the Embankment. The parcel on which it was built is steep, stretching from the Strand down to the Embankment along Beaufort Street. After Carte built the Savoy Hotel in 1889, the theatre entrance was moved to its present location at the hotel's courtyard off the Strand.
The Savoy was a state-of-the-art theatre and the first public building in the world to be lit entirely by electricity. In 1881, Sir Joseph Swan, inventor of the incandescent light bulb, supplied about 1,200 Swan incandescent lamps, and the lights were powered by a 120-horsepower (89 kW) generator on open land near the theatre. Carte explained why he had introduced electric light: "The greatest drawbacks to the enjoyment of the theatrical performances are, undoubtedly, the foul air and heat which pervade all theatres. As everyone knows, each gas-burner consumes as much oxygen as many people, and causes great heat beside. The incandescent lamps consume no oxygen, and cause no perceptible heat."
The first generator proved too small to power the whole building, and though the entire front-of-house was electrically lit, the stage was lit by gas until 28 December 1881. At that performance, Carte stepped onstage and broke a glowing lightbulb before the audience to demonstrate the safety of the new technology. The Times described the electric lighting as superior, visually, to gaslight. Gaslights were installed as a backup, but they rarely had to be used. The Times concluded that the theatre "is admirably adapted for its purpose, its acoustic qualities are excellent, and all reasonable demands of comfort and taste are complied with." Carte and his manager, George Edwardes (later famous as manager of the Gaiety Theatre), introduced several innovations including numbered seating, free programme booklets, good quality whisky in the bars, the "queue" system for the pit and gallery (an American idea) and a policy of no tipping for cloakroom or other services. Daily expenses at the theatre were about half the possible takings from ticket sales.
The work that opened the new theatre was Gilbert and Sullivan's comic opera Patience, which had been running since April 1881 at the smaller Opera Comique. The last eight of Gilbert and Sullivan's comic operas were premièred at the Savoy: Iolanthe (1882), Princess Ida (1884), The Mikado (1885), Ruddigore (1887), The Yeomen of the Guard (1888) The Gondoliers (1889), Utopia, Limited (1893), and The Grand Duke (1896), and the term Savoy opera has come to be associated with all their joint works. After the end of the Gilbert and Sullivan partnership, Carte, and later his widow, Helen (and her manager from 1901–1903, William Greet), staged other comic operas at the theatre by Arthur Sullivan and others, notably Ivan Caryll, Sydney Grundy, Basil Hood and Edward German. The Savoy Operas of the 1890s, however, were far less successful than those of the Gilbert and Sullivan heyday. After Carte's production of The Chieftain ended in March 1895, the Theatre briefly hosted the Carl Rosa Opera Company and then closed until late 1895, when Carte resumed productions at the theatre. Sullivan died in 1900, and Richard D'Oyly Carte died in 1901.
The Savoy Theatre closed in 1903, and was reopened under the management of John Leigh and Edward Laurillard from February 1904 (beginning with a musical, The Love Birds) to December 1906. The D'Oyly Carte Opera Company returned to the Savoy for repertory seasons between 1906 and 1909, in which year C. H. Workman took over the management of the theatre. He produced, among other works, Gilbert's final opera, with music by German, Fallen Fairies in 1909–10, which ran for only 51 performances. He also produced Two Merry Monarchs and Orpheus and Eurydice in 1910, the latter of which starred Marie Brema and Viola Tree in the title roles.
The D'Oyly Carte Opera Company did not play in the theatre from 1909 until 1929, instead touring throughout Britain and playing London seasons in other theatres; other works held the stage of the Savoy. George Augustus Richardson managed the theatre from November 1911 to February 1915. The Mikado's record as the Savoy's longest-running production was broken by the comedy Paddy the Next Best Thing, which played for 867 performances from April 1920.
Rupert D'Oyly Carte's theatre
In 1915 Richard D'Oyly Carte's son, Rupert D'Oyly Carte, took over management of the theatre. After serving in the navy in World War I, Carte decided to bring the D'Oyly Carte Opera Company back to London in first-rate style. He began to mount seasons of updated and refreshed Gilbert and Sullivan productions at first at the Prince's Theatre in 1919. J. B. Fagan's adaptation of Treasure Island first played in December 1922 at the Savoy Theatre with Arthur Bourchier as Long John Silver. It was so popular that it was revived every Christmas until the outbreak of World War II.
On 3 June 1929 Carte closed the Savoy Theatre, and the interior was completely rebuilt to designs by Frank A. Tugwell with elaborate décor by Basil Ionides. The ceiling was painted to resemble an April sky; the walls, translucent gold on silver; the rows of stalls were all richly upholstered in different colours, and the curtain repeated the tones of the seating. Ionides said that he took the colour scheme from a bed of zinnias in Hyde Park.
The entire floor space had been replanned: the old cloakrooms and bar at the back of the theatre were relocated to the side, and instead of 18 boxes there was now only one. The new auditorium had two tiers leaving three levels: stalls, dress, and upper circle. The capacity of the old house, originally 1,292, had been reduced to 986 by 1912, and the new theatre restored the capacity almost completely, with 1,200 seats. The new stage was 29.3 feet wide, by 29.5 feet deep.
The theatre reopened on 21 October 1929 with a new production of The Gondoliers designed by Charles Ricketts and conducted by Malcolm Sargent. In the only box sat Lady Gilbert, the librettist's widow. There were Gilbert and Sullivan seasons at the Savoy Theatre in 1929–30, 1932–33, 1951, 1954, 1961–62, 1975, 2000, 2001, 2002 and 2003. Other famous works presented at the Savoy included the première of Noël Coward's Blithe Spirit (1941, which ran 1,997 consecutive performances, setting a new record for non-musical theatre runs), Robert Morley in The Man Who Came to Dinner, and several comedies by William Douglas-Home starring, among others, Ralph Richardson, Peggy Ashcroft, and John Mills. The long-delayed first public performance in England of Oscar Wilde's Salome played at the theatre in 1931.
After Rupert D'Oyly Carte died in 1948 his daughter, Bridget D'Oyly Carte, succeeded to the D'Oyly Carte Opera Company and became a director and later president of the Savoy Hotel group, which controlled the theatre. Management of the theatre was assumed in 1948 by Sir Hugh Wontner, chairman of the Savoy hotel group. The theatre was designated a Grade II* listed building in 1973. The D'Oyly Carte Opera Company closed in 1982, and Dame Bridget died childless in 1985, bringing the family line to an end. Wontner continued as chairman of the theatre until his death in 1992.
1990 fire and restored theatre.
While the theatre was being renovated in February 1990, a fire gutted the building, except for the stage and backstage areas. A proposal to build a new theatre in late 20th-century style was overruled by the Savoy's insurers and by English Heritage, the government body with oversight of listed buildings. It was decided to restore the building as faithfully as possible to the 1929 designs. Tugwell's and Ionides's working designs had been preserved, allowing accurate restoration of the theatre under the direction of the architect Sir William Whitfield, Sir Hugh Wontner and the theatre's manager, Kevin Chapple. It reopened on 19 July 1993, with a royal gala that included a specially commissioned ballet, Savoy Suite, by Wayne Sleep to a score based on Sullivan's music. The present theatre has a capacity of 1,158. During the renovation, an extra storey was added above the theatre that includes a health club for the hotel and a swimming pool above the stage. The reopened theatre was the venue for the World Chess Championship in 1993, won by Garry Kasparov.
In 1993 Noël Coward's Relative Values, played at the theatre, having premièred there in 1951, an original run of 477 performances. Tom Stoppard's Travesties, with Antony Sher was next, and in 1994 the musical She Loves Me played, with Ruthie Henshall and John Gordon Sinclair. These were followed by Terry Johnson's Dead Funny; Alan Ayckbourn's Communicating Doors (which transferred to the theatre in 1996), with Angela Thorne; J. B. Priestley's When We Are Married, with Dawn French, Alison Steadman, and Leo McKern; and Ben Travers' Plunder, with Griff Rhys Jones and Kevin McNally. In 1997 a group led by Sir Stephen Waley-Cohen was given management of the theatre by The Savoy Group. Productions that followed included Simon Callow in The Importance of Being Oscar; Pet Shop Boys in concert, Ian Richardson in Pinero's The Magistrate; Edward Fox in A Letter of Resignation; the Royal Shakespeare Company's production of Richard III, with Robert Lindsay; and Coward's Hay Fever, with Geraldine McEwan in 1999.
In 2000 the briefly reconstituted D'Oyly Carte Opera Company produced H.M.S. Pinafore at the theatre. Donald Sutherland then starred in Enigmatic Variations, followed by a second D'Oyly Carte season, playing The Pirates of Penzance. In 2002, a season of Return to the Forbidden Planet was followed by the D'Oyly Carte productions of Iolanthe, The Yeomen of the Guard and The Mikado, and then a revival of Yasmina Reza's Life x 3. In 2003, the company revived Pinafore, followed by Bea Arthur at The Savoy, John Steinbeck's Of Mice and Men, Peter Pan and Pirates. These were followed by The Marriage of Figaro and The Barber of Seville performed by The Savoy Opera Company in 2004. Next were seasons of Lorna Luft starring in Songs My Mother Taught Me and the new salsa musical Murderous Instincts. Coward's Blithe Spirit was revived in 2004–05.
The Savoy Hotel group, including the theatre, was sold in 2004 to Quinlan Private which, in turn, sold the theatre in 2005 to the Ambassador Theatre Group (ATG) and the Tulbart Group (selling the Savoy Hotel to Prince Al-Waleed bin Talal). Productions since then have been mostly revivals and transfers of modern musicals; major productions have included The Rat Pack: Live from Las Vegas and a new musical theatre version of Porgy and Bess, directed by Trevor Nunn (both in 2006), Fiddler on the Roof (2007–08), Carousel (2008–09), Legally Blonde (2010–12), Let It Be (2013–14), Dirty Rotten Scoundrels (2014–15), Gypsy (2015), Funny Girl (2016) and Dreamgirls (2016–). In December 2013, ATG acquired sole ownership of the Savoy.
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The Savoy Theatre that we know today opened on the 21st of October 1929 with a production of Gilbert and Sulivan's 'The Gondoliers'. However, the present Theatre was actually a reconstruction of an earlier Theatre, also called the Savoy, which had first opened on the 10th of October 1881 with a production of Gilbert and Sulivan's 'Patience or Bunthorne's Bride.'
The Theatre's Manager, Richard D'Oyly Carte, wrote an address to the public for the Theatre's opening night programme, which also included details of the construction of the building.
'Ladies and Gentlemen, - I beg leave to lay before you some details of a new theatre, which I have caused to be built with the intention of devoting it to the representation of the operas of Messrs. W. S. Gilbert and Arthur Sullivan, with whose joint productions I have, up to now, had the advantage of being associated.
The Savoy Theatre is placed between the Strand and the Victoria Embankment, on a plot of land of which I have purchased the freehold, and is built on a spot possessing many associations of historic interest, being close to the Savoy Chapel and in the 'precinct of the Savoy,' where stood formerly the Savoy Palace, once inhabited by John of Gaunt and the Dukes of Lancaster, and made memorable in the Wars of the Roses. On the Savoy Manor there was formerly a theatre. I have used the ancient name as an appropriate title for the present one.
The new theatre has been erected from the designs and under the superintendence of Mr. C. J. Phipps, F.S.A., who has probably more experience in the building of such places than any architect of past or present times, having put up, I believe, altogether thirty-three or thirty-four theatres.
The facade of the theatre towards the Embankment, and that in Beaufort Buildings, are of red brick and Portland stone. The theatre is large and commodious, but little smaller than the Gaiety, and will seat 1,292 persons. I think I may claim to have carried out some improvements deserving special notice. The most important of these are in the lighting and decoration. From the time, now some years since, that the first electric lights in lamps were exhibited outside the Paris Opera House, I have been convinced that electric light in some form is the light of the future for use in theatres, not to go further. The peculiar steely blue colour and the flicker which are inevitable in all systems of 'arc' lights, however, make them unsuitable for use in any but very large buildings. The invention of the 'incandescent lamp' has now paved the way for the application of electricity to lighting houses, and consequently theatres.
The 'arc' light is simply a continuous electric spark, and is nearly the colour of lightning. The incandescent light is produced by heating a filament of carbon to a white heat, and is much the colour of gas - a little clearer. Thanks to an ingenious method of 'shunting' it, the current is easily controllable, and the lights can be raised or lowered at will. There are several extremely good incandescent lamps, but I finally decided to adopt that of Mr. J. W. Swan, the well-known inventor, of Newcastle-on-Tyne. The enterprise of Messrs. Siemens Bros. & Co. has enabled me to try the experiment of exhibiting this light in my theatre. About 1,200 lights are used, and the power to generate a sufficient current for these is obtained from large steam-engines, giving about 120 horse-power, placed on some open land near the theatre. The new light is not only used in the audience part of the theatre, but on the stage, for footlights, side and top lights, &c, and (not of the least importance for the comfort of the performers) in the dressing-rooms - in fact, in every part of the house.
This is the first time that it has been attempted to light any public building entirely by electricity. What is being done is an experiment, and may succeed, or fail. It is not possible, until the application of the accumulator or secondary battery - the reserve store of electric power - becomes practicable, to guarantee absolutely against any breakdown of the electric light. To provide against such a contingency gas is laid on throughout the building, and the 'pilot' light of the central sun-burner will be always kept alight, so that in case of accident the theatre can be flooded with gaslight in a few seconds. The greatest drawbacks to the enjoyment of theatrical performances are, undoubtedly, the foul air and heat which pervade all theatres. As everyone knows, each gas-burner consumes as much oxygen as many people, and causes great heat besides. The incandescent lamps consume no oxygen, and cause no perceptible heat. If the experiment of electric lighting succeeds, there can be no question of the enormous advantages to be gained in purity of air and coolness - advantages the value of which it is hardly possible to over-estimate.
The decorations of this theatre are by Messrs. Collinson & Lock. I venture to think that, with some few exceptions, the interiors of most theatres hitherto built have been conceived with little, if any, artistic purpose, and generally executed with little completeness, and in a more or less garish manner. Without adopting either of the styles known as 'Queen Anne' and 'Early English,' or entering upon the so called 'aesthetic' manner, a result has now been produced which I feel sure will be appreciated by all persons of taste. Paintings of cherubim, muses, angels, and mythological deities have been discarded, and the ornament consists entirely of delicate plaster modelling, designed in the manner of the Italian Renaissance.
The main colour-tones are white, pale yellow, and gold - gold used only for backgrounds or in large masses, and not - following what may be called, for want of a worse name, the Gingerbread school of decorative art - for gilding relief-work or mouldings. The back walls of the boxes and the corridors are in two tones of Venetian red. No painted act-drop is used, but a curtain of creamy satin, quilted, having a fringe at the bottom and a valance of embroidery of the character of Spanish work, keeps up the consistency of the colour scheme. This curtain is arranged to drape from the centre. The stalls are covered with blue plush of an inky hue, and the balcony seats are of stamped velvet of the same tint, while the curtains of the boxes are of yellowish silk, brocaded with a pattern of decorative flowers in broken colour.
To turn to a very different subject. I believe a fertile source of annoyance to the public to be the demanding or expecting of fees and gratuities by attendants. This system will, therefore, be discountenanced. Programmes will be furnished and wraps and umbrellas taken charge of gratuitously. The attendants will be paid fair wages, and any attendant detected in accepting money from visitors will be instantly dismissed. I trust that the public will co-operate with me to support this reform (which already works so well at the Gaiety Theatre) by not tempting the attendants by the offer of gratuities. The showing-in of visitors and selling programmes will, therefore, not be sublet to a contractor, who has to pay the manager a high rental, to recoup which he is obliged to extract by his employees all he can get out of the public; nor will the refreshment saloons be sublet, but they will be under the supervision of a salaried manager, and the most careful attention will be given to procuring everything of the very best quality.
The theatre will be opened under my management on Monday next, October 10, and I have the satisfaction to be able to announce that the opening piece will be Messrs. W. S. Gilbert and Arthur Sullivan's opera, Patience, which, produced at the Opera Comique on April 23, is still running with a success beyond any precedent. The piece is mounted afresh with new scenery, costumes, and increased chorus. It is being again rehearsed under the personal direction of the author and composer, and on the opening night the opera will be conducted by the composer.
I am, ladies and gentlemen, your obedient servant, R, D'OYLY CARTE, Beaufort House, Strand: October 6, 1881.'
* Details of Construction *
This new theatre has been erected for Mr. D'Oyly Carte from the designs and under the superintendence of Mr. C. J. Phipps, F.S.A., architect of the Gaiety, the Haymarket, the Princess's, and other theatres. It is situate on the west side of Beaufort Buildings, Strand, and occupies a site absolutely isolated on all four sides, thus affording free and expeditious entrance and exit for all classes of the public. The entrances are thus distributed, and are arranged so as to utilise the peculiar levels of the site: For the stalls and dress circle, and for all persons coming in carriages, the entrances are from Somerset Street, just off the Thames Embankment.
The pit is also entered here, and there is an entrance to the upper circle. The audience for both these latter parts can come direct from the Strand by a short flight of steps adjoining Beaufort House. In Beaufort Buildings also is an entrance to, and on a level with, the upper circle. The entrances before referred to, from the Embankment, are on a level with the dress circle, and a few steps lead down to the stalls and pit. The gallery is entered from Carting Lane, a street in a direct line from the Embankment to the Strand. The royal entrance is at the angle of Somerset Street and Carting Lane. The stage entrance is in Herbert's Passage, and the box office for booking seats during the day is situated close to the Strand at the angle of the Beaufort Buildings frontage.
The theatre is entered from Somerset Street through a semicircular vestibule paved with black and white marble, in which are the offices for booking and obtaining seats in the evening. Doorways immediately opposite the entrances lead to the dress-circle corridor, out of which wide staircases will be found on both sides of the theatre leading to the stalls. From this vestibule are also means of communicating, by an ascending staircase, with the upper circle, and by pass-doors to the pit staircase. All the entrances, passages, and staircases are of fire-resisting material; the flights of stairs are supported at each end by solid brick walls, and each staircase has a hand-rail on either side. There is no part of the theatre that has not two means of both ingress and egress, and the stag;e is separated from the auditory by a solid brick wall taken up completely through the roof. Water laid on from the high-pressure mains is in several parts of the theatre, and every possible means has been taken to ensure both comfort and safety to the audience. On the floor below the vestibule is a large refreshment saloon for the pit, and contiguous to it a smoking room opening out of the stalls corridor, with a separate boudoir lounge for ladies. There are also refreshment saloons on the upper floors of the theatre for both the upper circle and gallery, with all necessary retiring and cloak rooms...
...The auditory is thus arranged: On either side of the stage opening (which is 30 feet wide and 32 feet high) are three private boxes on each of the three levels. These are divided by partitions and ornamental pillars, and are surmounted by an arch spanning the whole width of the proscenium, springing from a cornice on the level of the gallery front. These boxes are richly upholstered in hangings of gold-coloured brocaded silk. The orchestra is in front of the stage, and is of sufficient capacity for a full band of twenty-seven or more musicians. There are nine rows of stalls immediately adjoining the orchestra, seated to hold 150 persons in arm-chairs, with ample space allowed for passing between the several rows, and wide unimpeded gangways on either side of the entrance passages. Behind the stalls are six rows of pit seats, calculated to seat 250 persons, with a spacious open corridor behind for standing and promenading. Above the pit, but at sufficient height to allow of persons at the very back seeing the full height of the scenery, is the dress circle of six rows of seats, with arm-chairs for 160 persons. There are no pillars of any kind in the dress circle, so a clear, unobstructed view of the stage is obtained from every seat. Above the dress circle, but receding some 9 feet back from it, is the upper circle, seated to accommodate 160 persons in five rows. The amphitheatre and gallery recede 5 feet behind the upper circle, and will seat 400 to 500 persons in eight rows. The whole seating accommodation will be for 1,292 persons.
In each tier the balcony front takes the form of a horseshoe, that being the best adapted for perfect sight of the stage. The ornamentation of these several balcony fronts is Renaissance in character, and is elaborately moulded and enriched with the figures and foliage peculiar to the Italian phase of the style, and gilded. The ceiling over the auditory takes the form of an extended fan from the arch spanning the proscenium, and is divided into a series of geometric panels, richly modelled in Renaissance ornament in relief, of the same character as the balcony fronts. Colour is sparingly used in the ceiling, the background of the ornament only being painted a light gold colour. The proscenium arch is divided by ribs and cross-styles into a series of panels, and the ornament in these is gilded. Over the proscenium in the tympanum of the arch is a basso relievo of figures and foliated ornament. The walls of the auditory are hung with a rich embossed paper, in two tones of deep Venetian red. The seats are covered in peacock blue, plush being used for the stalls and stamped velvet for the dress circle. A pale-gold coloured satin curtain, with an embroidered valance, takes the place of the usual painted act-drop.
The stage, which is laid with all the latest improvements in mechanical contrivances, is 60 feet wide, by a depth from the float-light to the back wall of 52 feet. There is a clear height above the stage of 56 feet for the working of the scenery, and a sink below of 15 feet. Behind the stage, and occupying the whole wing of the building in Herbert's Passage, are the dressing-rooms.
The theatre is fitted with a complete system of gas-lighting, but this is only for use in case of emergency, the whole of the illuminating for all parts of the establishment being by means of electricity. This has been undertaken by Messrs. Siemens & Co., and the lights adopted are those introduced by Swan, of Newcastle, and known as the Swan incandescent light, the power necessary to generate the electric current for so many lights being supplied by powerful steam-engines placed in a separate building on the vacant land adjoining the theatre. These 'Swan' lights are of a beautiful colour, and in no way impair the atmosphere of the theatre, and emit no heat. They are not of the piercing brightness of the electric arc lights as seen in our streets and elsewhere, and therefore not unpleasant to the eyes. This is the first instance of a public building being lighted permanently in all its departments by the electric light.
The exterior facade of the theatre is in Somerset Street, facing the Thames Embankment, and both this and the Beaufort Buildings frontage are built of red brick, with Portland stone for all moulded parts, and are of the Italian style of architecture. The contractors who have been engaged upon the works are as follows: Patman & Fotheringham for the whole of the builder's work, including the stage. Collinson & Lock have arranged the scheme of colour for the interior, and have executed the painting, papering, and gilding, and have supplied the upholstery and carpets; they have also executed the plaster ornamentation of the auditory, in conjunction with Jackson & Sons. Strode & Co. have done the whole of the gas arrangements. Wadman has manufactured the arm-chairs for dress circle and stalls. Burke & Co. have laid down the marble floor of the vestibule. C. Drake & Co. have executed the concrete floors and staircases. Faraday & Son have made all the internal fittings in connection with the electric lighting. Merryweather & Sons have supplied the fire hydrants and other such appliances. Clarke & Co. have constructed the revolving iron shutters and blinds at entrances. Mr. J. E. Walker has been the architect's clerk of works.
The above address by Richard D'Oyly Carte, and details of the construction of the Savoy Theatre, were first published in the Theatre's opening programme, and later reproduced in the book 'The Savoy Opera' by Percy Fitzgerald, in 1894.
* From The Era (London, England), Saturday, October 1, 1881; Issue 2245. *
This new Theatre has been erected from the designs and under the superintendence of Mr. C. J, Phipps, F.S.A., architect of the Gaiety, the Haymarket, the Princess's, and other Theatres. It is situate on the west side of Beaufort-buildings, Strand, and occupies a site absolutely isolated on all four sides, thus affording free and expeditious entrance and exit for all classes of the public.
The entrances are thus distributed, and are arranged so as to utilise the peculiar levels of the site. For the stalls and dress-circle, and for all persons coming in carriages, the entrances are from just off the Thames Embankment. The pit is also entered here, and there is an entrance to the upper circle. The audience for both these latter parts can come direct from the Strand by a short flight of steps adjoining Beaufort House. In Beaufort-buildings also is an entrance to, and on a level with, the upper circle. The entrances before referred to, from the Embankment, are on a level with the dress circle, and a few steps lead down to the stalls and pit. The gallery is entered from Carting-lane, a street in a direct line from the Embankment to the Strand. The Royal entrance is at the angle of Somerset-street, and Carting-lane. The stage entrance is in Herbert's-passage, and the box-office for booking seats during the day is situated close to the Strand at the angle of the Beaufort-buildings frontage. The Theatre is entered from Somerset-street through a semi-circular vestibule paved with black and white marble, in which are the offices for booking and obtaining seats in the evening.
Doorways immediately opposite the entrances lead to the dress-circle corridor, out of which wide staircases will be found on both sides of the Theatre leading to the stalls. From this vestibule are also means of communicating by an ascending staircase with the upper circle, and by pass-doors to the pit staircase.
All the entrances, passages, and staircases are of fire-resisting material; the flights of stairs are supported at each end by solid brick walls, and each staircase has a hand-rail on either side. There is no part of the Theatre that has not two means of both ingress and egress, and the stage is separated from the auditory by a solid brick wall taken up completely through the roof. Water laid on from the high-pressure mains is in several parts of the Theatre, and every possible means has been taken to insure both comfort and safety to the audience.
On the floor below the vestibule is a large refreshment-saloon for the pit, and contiguous to it a smoking-room opening out of the stalls corridor, with a separate boudoir lounge for ladies. There are also refreshment-saloons on the upper floors of the Theatre for both the upper circle and gallery, with all necessary retiring and cloak-rooms.
The auditory is thus arranged:– On either side of the stage opening (which is 30ft. wide and 32ft. high), are three private boxes on each of the three levels. These are divided by partitions and ornamental pillars, and are surmounted by an arch spanning the whole width of the proscenium, springing from a cornice on the level of the gallery front. These boxes are richly upholstered in hangings of gold colour brocaded silk.
The orchestra is in front of the stage, and is of sufficient capacity for a full band of twenty-seven or more musicians. There are nine rows of stalls immediately adjoining the orchestra, seated to hold 150 persons in arm chairs, with ample space allowed for passing between the several rows; and wide unimpeded gangways on either side of the entrance passages. Behind the stalls are six rows of pit seats, calculated to seat 250 persons, with a spacious open corridor behind for standing and promenading.
Above the pit, but at sufficient height to allow of persons at the very back seeing the full height of the scenery, is the dress circle of six rows of seats, with arm-chairs for 160 persons. There are no pillars of any kind in the dress circle, so a clear, unobstructed view of the stage is obtained from every seat. Above the dress circle, but receding some nine feet back from it, is the upper circle, seated to accommodate 160 persons in five rows. The amphitheatre and gallery recede 5ft. behind the upper circle, and will seat 400 to 500 persons in eight rows. The whole seating accommodation will be for 1,292 persons. In each tier the balcony front takes the form of a horseshoe, that being the best adapted for perfect sight of the stage.
The ornamentation of these several balcony fronts is Renaissance in character, and is elaborately moulded and enriched with the figures and foliage peculiar to the Italian phase of the style, and gilded. The ceiling over the auditory takes the form of an extended fan from the arch spanning the proscenium, and is divided into a series of geometric panels, richly modelled in Renaissance ornament in relief, of the same character as the balcony fronts. Colour is sparingly used in the ceiling, the background of the ornament only being painted a light gold colour. The proscenium arch is divided by ribs and cross styles into a series of panels, and the ornament in these is gilded. Over the proscenium in the tympanum of the arch is a basso relievo of figures and foliated ornament. The walls of the auditory are hung with a rich embossed paper, in two tones of deep Venetian red. The seats are covered in peacock blue, plush being used for the stalls, and stamped velvet for the dress circle. A gold-coloured satin curtain takes the place of the usual painted act drop.
The stage, which is laid with all the latest improvements in mechanical contrivances, is 60ft. wide, by a depth from the float-light to the back wall of 52ft. There is a clear height above the stage of 56ft. for the working of the scenery, and a sink below of 15ft. Behind the stage, and occupying the whole wing of the building in Herbert's-passage, are the dressing-rooms.
The Theatre is fitted with a complete system of gas lighting, but this is only for use in case of emergency, the whole of the illuminating for all parts of the establishment being by means of electricity. This has been undertaken by Messrs. Siemens and Co., and the lights adopted are those introduced by Swan, of Newcastle, and known as the Swan incandescent light, the power necessary to generate the electric current for so many lights being supplied by powerful steam engines placed in a separate building on the vacant land adjoining the Theatre. These "Swan" lights are of a beautiful colour, and in no way impair the atmosphere of the Theatre, and emit no heat. They are not of the piercing brightness of the electric arc lights as seen in our streets and elsewhere, and therefore not unpleasant to the eyes. This is the first instance of a public building being lighted permanently in all its departments by the electric light.
The exterior façade of the Theatre is in Somerset-street, facing the Thames Embankment, and both this and the Beaufort-buildings frontage are built of red brick, with Portland stone for all moulded parts, and are of the Italian style of architecture.
The contractors who have been engaged upon the works are as follows:– Patman and Fotheringham, for the whole of the builder's work including stage. Collinson and Lock have arranged the scheme of colour for the interior, and have executed the painting, papering, and gilding, and have supplied the upholstery and carpets; they have also executed the plaster ornamentation of the auditory, in conjunction with Jackson and Sons. Strode and Co. have done the whole of the gas arrangements. Wadman has manufactured the armchairs for dress circle and stalls. Burke and Co. have laid down the marble floor of the vestibule. C. Drake and Co. have executed the concrete floors and staircases. Farraday and Son have made all the internal fittings in connection with the electric lighting. Merryweather and Sons have supplied the fire hydrants and other such appliances. Clarke and Co. have constructed the revolving iron shutters and blinds at entrances. Mr. J. E. Walker has been the architect's clerk of works.
The opening, fixed for Monday, has been postponed until Thursday next. Mr. D'Oyly Carte has determined to spare his patrons the annoyance arising from the fee system, and here it will have no existence. The refreshment-saloons will not be sublet to a contractor, whose interest it is to get every possible penny out of the public, but will be under the supervision of a salaried Manager.
Messrs Gilbert and Sullivan's comic opera Patience is to be mounted afresh, with new scenery, costumes, and increased chorus. It is being again rehearsed under the personal direction of the author and composer, and on the opening night the opera will be conducted by the composer.
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Venue Access Information.
There are 75 steps to the Stalls from the foyer. These are NOT advised for patrons with limited mobility. There is NO lift in the theatre. Dress Circle is 32 steps down from the foyer (two flights of stairs). There is also street - level access into the Dress Circle which can be accessed from Carting Lane. Patrons wishing to use this entrance need to arrive at the theatre no earlier than half an hour before show-time and one of their party should inform the Stage Door (also located on Carting Lane) that they need to use this entrance.
Patrons who arrive via the main foyer on Savoy Court can be escorted around to the Carting lane entrance by a member of staff. Patrons that wish to do this should be aware that it is a 10 minute walk around the theatre and escorting staff will not be able to aid in the manoeuvring of wheelchairs. This route also involves navigating gradients on Savoy Street.
The theatre has space for two wheelchairs in the Dress Circle. Customers who wish to transfer from wheelchairs should be aware that there are two steps to the most accessible seats and the ends of row F and G of the Dress Circle are recommended. If patrons wish to transfer but are unable to negotiate any steps, the wheelchair spaces are the only seating with complete level access. Aisle seats and Stalls have best leg room. There are 4 bars in the theatre – Stalls, Dress, Mezzanine and Grand Circle. There is no level access to the bars but drinks can be brought to seats.
Guide dogs and hearing dogs are welcome at the Savoy Theatre. They can stay with you during the performance; however you must inform the Box Office so that an aisle seat can be booked. Alternatively, a member of staff will care for your dog during the performance. There are toilets on all levels of the theatre. Accessible toilet facilities are located on the Dress Circle level.
Location : Savoy Theatre, Savoy Court, Strand, London WC2R 0ET
Transport: Rail : Charing Cross (National Rail) then 8 minutes. Underground: Charing Cross (Bakerloo Line, Northern Line) then 8 minutes. London Buses routes : 6, 9, 11, 15, 23, 87, 91, 139, 176, N9, N11 and N15 stop outside.
Access Line : 0800 912 6971
Tel: 0844 871 7687
